Return of the Sword God-Rank Civil Servant-Chapter 199

Lee Won-an, the administrative officer, was enjoying his commute to work these days.

“Yesterday, Officer An Su-ho cleared three 1-star gates in a single day.”

“Wow, again?”

The reason he was so happy was simple.

It was because of Su-ho.

It was only natural for him to feel joy.

After all, Su-ho didn’t just clear one or two gates—he cleared three 1-star gates in a single day!

Could this be considered possible from a logical standpoint?

No, as far as Lee knew, there had never been a hunter with such a record.

‘At this rate, we can call him a one-man army...!’

But Su-ho made it happen.

And to top it off, Su-ho was his superior.

What’s more, Lee and his colleagues were safely just being trained while Su-ho handled all the high-level tasks, including performance evaluations.

‘Ah, An Su-ho! He is my light and my salt!’

For such a figure, it wasn’t just Lee Won-an, but everyone in the exploration team who worshipped him like a god.

No, not just worshipped—became fanatics.

Anyone who dared to criticize him would be met with a resolution to break their finger in return!

But then, Lee Won-an received unexpected news.

“What? What did you say?”

It started with a call from Team Leader Oh Bong-ju of Special Team 1.

Currently, Team Leader Oh Bong-ju was acting in the roles of both the Gate Management Department head and the Gate Bureau head.

Where were the heads of the Detection Department and the Management ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) Department?

They were all swept away by the redevelopment gate and lost their heads.

Even the team leaders of the General Management Team in the Management Department were executed.

Thus, the only two people left to manage the Gate Bureau were Team Leader Oh Bong-ju of Special Team 1 and Team Leader Jeong Cheol-min of Special Team 2, with Oh Bong-ju handling all the duties.

Oh Bong-ju said:

– Get in here. The representatives from Hexagon and Prime are here! And why is Team Leader 2 not responding?!

“Ah, I’ll get in touch and head over right now!”

It was an emergency.

Why were representatives from Hexagon and Prime suddenly at the Gate Bureau?!

Lee Won-an quickly tried to contact Su-ho.

But...

– The phone could not be connected, and after the beeping, it went to voicemail...

The phone wouldn’t connect.

He guessed that Su-ho was in the middle of a gate raid.

“Ugh... What should I do?”

This was bad.

He had heard that Team Leader 2 was also going with Team Leader Jo for gate raids lately.

‘At least I have to go.’

Lee Won-an’s anxiety grew.

***

[ Gate cleared. ]

[ The MVP of the gate raid is ‘An Su-ho’. ]

[ Additional experience points granted for MVP selection. ]

[ Bonus stat awarded due to MVP selection. ]

[ Level up achieved. ]

[ All stats increased by 1. ]

[ One bonus stat gained. ]

After defeating the boss monster, a flood of notifications appeared before Su-ho.

He quickly allocated his bonus stats before stepping out of the gate.

However, his phone was full of missed calls.

‘What is this?’

They were all from Lee Won-an.

Su-ho was about to call him back when he noticed a message from Lee. His brow furrowed.

‘Hexagon and Prime sent representatives?’

Since Su-ho had not answered, Lee had left a message instead.

Su-ho quickly started the car and headed toward where Jeong Cheol-min was.

Jeong Cheol-min was someone who needed to be rescued; if Su-ho didn’t help him, he would be stuck hunting viruses for the rest of his days.

Upon arriving at Jeong Cheol-min’s location, Su-ho hurriedly pulled him out and heard the full story, which made Jeong Cheol-min narrow his eyes.

“Why are Hexagon and Prime here?”

“I don’t know either. We’ll have to go and find out.”

“Why are those people here suddenly? Even their representatives?”

Jeong Cheol-min looked at his own phone, filled with countless missed calls, and quickly dialed Oh Bong-ju.

The phone was answered, and Oh Bong-ju snapped impatiently.

– Where are you right now?

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

Oh Bong-ju wanted to yell, but he held back, knowing guests were present.

Jeong Cheol-min immediately apologized.

“Sorry, it was hard to get in touch due to the gate raid.”

– Sigh... Hurry up and come in.

The truth of Jeong Cheol-min’s leveling was known only to Su-ho in the entire association, even among their teammates.

There wasn’t a big reason behind it.

The fewer people who know a secret, the better.

That’s why it could be glossed over so easily.

The Grand Hunter Association's Gate Division's failure to make contact due to gate operations was simply an excuse for work-related matters.

When they finally arrived at the Association, they found Lee Won-an, the civil servant, waiting for them like a criminal at the entrance to the Gate Division meeting room.

Jeong Cheol-min asked him, “What’s going on?”

“I... I’m not sure yet...” Lee responded, hesitantly.

“What?”

He was waiting around without even knowing the reason?

Su-ho frowned at that.

The two entered the meeting room.

There, to their surprise, were some influential figures waiting for them.

Kim Su-baek, the representative of the Hexagon Guild.

Han Tae-hyun, the vice representative of the Hexagon Guild.

Ma Sang-il, the representative of the Prime Guild.

Bang Do-hyun, the vice representative of the Prime Guild.

And that was not all.

Next to them were the top-ranked players from the Grand Player Board, seated as well.

Su-ho glanced at them.

Ban Yu-il, ranked first in Hexagon.

Kim Kwan, ranked second in Prime.

Na Hyeon-il, ranked third in Hexagon.

Woo Seong-woo, ranked fourth in Prime.

The attendance of these prominent figures from each guild was not particularly surprising.

At least not by Su-ho’s standards.

‘They’re still just Level 2, so how impressive can they really be?’

However, Jeong Cheol-min was overwhelmed.

It was understandable.

It was extremely rare to see such high-level players all gathered in one place, especially without any special occasion. It was practically unprecedented since the association’s formation.

Jeong Cheol-min awkwardly apologized.

“I’m sorry for being late. We couldn’t contact you sooner due to the gate operations.”

“Come sit down quickly. Do you know how long these people have been waiting for you?”

Oh Bong-ju fussed.

Su-ho quietly furrowed his brow at his words.

Then he calmly spoke up.

“Was today a scheduled meeting? I wasn’t informed about anything in advance.”

Jeong Cheol-min’s eyes widened in disbelief.

He quickly jabbed Su-ho’s thigh.

The implication was clear: Why was he suddenly acting like this?

Su-ho subtly signaled to him.

When Su-ho’s voice suddenly reached him, Jeong Cheol-min looked at him in shock.

Su-ho gave him a faint, knowing smile that only Jeong Cheol-min could see and continued.

“Apologies for the delay. If you had contacted us in advance, there wouldn’t have been any need for you to wait. Now, could you tell me why you've gathered here today?”

The atmosphere grew cold.

Especially Oh Bong-ju and Jeong Cheol-min froze.

It was understandable.

These weren’t just any people — they were the heads of Hexagon and Prime Guilds.

They were VIPs, not just to the Gate Division, but to the entire Grand Hunter Association.

It was only natural.

The Grand Hunter Association had strong connections with major guilds.

And today, not only the representatives but also vice representatives and top-rankers were present.

Yet, speaking to them this way... it was unprecedented.

Even the Gate Division's head was bowing to them. To speak this way to them, no matter who Su-ho was, was something that these two had never imagined.

In response to Su-ho’s question, Prime Guild’s Vice-Representative Bang Do-hyun laughed, his amusement evident.

“Are you Mr. An Su-ho, the civil servant?”

“I’m not a civil servant. I’m an administrative officer.”

“Oh, my apologies. I’m still not familiar with the titles in the civil service...”

“Well, yes. Anyway, I am An Su-ho, the administrative officer.”

“Ah, well, it’s just that I think this might be your first time in a situation like this.”

“What kind of situation is this?”

“Mr. An, why are you acting like this?”

“What do you mean?”

Unable to bear it any longer, Jeong Cheol-min tried to stop Su-ho again.

But Su-ho remained indifferent.

Naturally.

Su-ho had no intention of yielding to them.

‘Trying to assert dominance as if I haven’t dealt with this kind of disrespect before?’

A vice-representative of a massive guild.

Would such a person really fail to distinguish between the titles of civil servant and administrative officer?

Su-ho was also a well-known public figure, frequently seen in the media.

This could only mean one of two things.

Either he was feigning confusion to assert dominance or this was an intentional slight.

But either way, it was far from pleasant.

So Su-ho was not going to let this slide.

The vice-representative of a major guild trying to pull this off?

Su-ho glared at him again and asked, “So, could you explain why everyone here has come to the Association today? Was there something so important that you needed to wait for me and Team Leader Jeong?”

Bang Do-hyun chuckled.

It was a laugh that suggested he found it all ridiculous.

Before he could say anything, Han Tae-hyun, the vice-representative from Hexagon, spoke.

“Well, to be honest, we came here about the new gate issue.”

“A new gate?”

“Yes, we’ve been told that Level 1 gates are being resolved by the Special Team 2, and there are no new ones available for transactions.”

“That’s right. If we can handle it, we take care of everything, including new gates and sealed gates.”

“Oh...”

Han Tae-hyun was momentarily stunned to hear the words from the very person involved.

He was speechless.

And then Na Hyeon-il, ranked third in Hexagon, spoke up.

“Isn’t this a bit too much?”

“Excuse me?”

“No matter how capable you are, Mr. An, it’s a bit too much to monopolize all the gates. What are hunters like us supposed to do?”

“What are you saying?”

“I’m saying exactly that. The Association has almost monopolized the gates recently, and now we’re just left twiddling our thumbs. Is this right?”

Na Hyeon-il’s voice grew louder, and anger began to seep through his tone.

Clearly, he was quite upset.

His raised voice caused both Oh Bong-ju and Jeong Cheol-min to flinch, unconsciously biting their lips and closing their eyes.

They didn’t know what to do at this point.

But only one person remained unaffected.

Su-ho, with an expression of complete indifference... no, almost a blank expression, slowly surveyed the guests.

And then he quietly asked, “Is this the consensus of everyone here? You really came here just for this reason?”

“Well...”

“Ahem.”

Han Tae-hyun answered, and Bang Do-hyun coughed awkwardly.

The rest remained silent, their faces stern, but nothing more.

The silence was golden and a sign of agreement.

Everyone silently agreed.

And Su-ho smiled slightly at their unspoken agreement.

“You’re all interesting.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“I’m just curious. Why do you think the profession of hunter and the formation of guilds came about in the first place?”

“What’s that supposed to mean...”

“I’m asking because it’s such an interesting question. You’re saying the Association is monopolizing gates? That’s why you’re just sitting there doing nothing? When did hunters and guilds start treating gates as commodities?”

“What?”

Finally, Bang Do-hyun raised his voice in surprise.

The others frowned or narrowed their eyes.

Oh Bong-ju just bowed his head in shame.

But Su-ho wasn’t done.

With a chilling gaze, he asked, “You better be careful with your words. I’m personally offended, and so are the national hunters who have sacrificed for this country and the Association.”